Retroreflective animation display



May 16, 1950 F. HOTCHNER RETROREFLECTIVE ANIMATION DISPLAY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed March 12, 1945 INVENTOR.

May 16', 1950 F. HOTCHNER RETROREFLECTIVE ANIMATION DISPLAY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed March 12, 1945 INVENTOR Patented May 16, 1950 "UNITE-D srAT as ATENT OFFICE cemher16, 1947. Divided'and this apg'ilic'ati on March 15, 1947, Serial No. 735.015

4 Claims. (01. 40-130) This inventionrelates; to ananimated retrorefiective display. device. and. provides apparatus which receives :light .rays...coming from the general direction of .the observer modulates the rays and fthemreturns. themby reflection in the general direction of the observer, the modulation beingQs'o. effectedas to'.produce the illusion of animationcver .the displaysurface.

This. application. is adivisionoimy copending application of.thesametitlufiied March .12, 1945, Serial. No..582,'3fi8, now Patent No. 2,432,896,

issuedDec..l'6,;l94Zi... g

Numerousretroerefiect-ive sign types are known .in the priorjart, findingtheir highest utilityas highway or roadside si ns-Which are rendere luminous to .the view; of. riders ,oi. anproaching .cars by reflectionof rays oitheheadlight beams. Itis .an .object -01; this invention togprovide deyicesoithis general: type. Withthe new feature ofv changeable. copy and.- animation in realistic 3 simulation of natural or fanciful objects in motion.

It isan object to produce a device of this char- "acter. which will be capable of representing motion in any direction across the display surface, and at any speed. 'fromfplace to place over the display'surface, and changingindirection and speed from instant to instant during the action as desired, and in anycolor or combination of colors, or changing in color, and in a variety of techniques of rendition.

It is an object to produces. device which .Will

be simpleand rugged in construction, .reliab-le,

and capable of operation over long. periods .of

time with. the minimum of attention. {To this end I have contrived. to. produceallthe various typesof action eiiects described by the use of a single major moving element which will be light in weight and which will have an. actual mechanical displacement of very smalldistance, generally a fraction of an inch for fairly large displays.

Another. objectv isto. produce a. device in which they display .subjectuor. copy may .be ,-readily changed bythc substitution .of anew element for the old with. .very little Work and expense.

I A, further object is to produce an animation device which will be capable of producing. a continual motion-.efiect by the repeated showing of aiimited lllIIlbQl' of scenes, .which .efiect will be The invention is shown in a certain preferred 4 2 mbodimentin the. accompanyin d awings, in which thesaine reference numeralappearingin several yiews-is used to. indicate the same or the equivalent part throughout.

In the drawings; l I v Fi u L sa ont. e evation f portabl stand. ,type, retro retle ctive display device, made hereaccording. 0n the display surface: isLshow-n one scene of a sequenceofiscencs in;b1;ack-;-and white silhouette..- .of ananimation efiect. 'I he outlines of the .objeetdepicted are shown as following the boundaries pf --the individual lenses of the lens screen, producing a serrated efiect hen a Single cnei ew d, I

Figure .2. is I a sectional elevation oi the device taken; alongthe section-line 2 -2. .i n,E-igure,1 showing .the box constructiomthe mounting of the screens, and the driving gnechanisim Figure} is across section onanenlarged scale of the device fragmented by theireinovaltof the mid section, taken along the sams ssection line, .illustr ating thev screens .in.,their relationship to each other and. the..details..o-f theitnechanis m. Figure -4 is a vertical..cross s'e'ction,,through the; screens shown in their ,proper relatiye positi ing and sh w n s n l b m f.. pa e rays incident'pernendicularly onfoneof the lenses of the lens, screen andpassing into the devicegto be. modulated bycthe pattern screen a and, refl'ected back through .the saine.l ens to the field .of view... The "arrow heads 'ppintingtin the two directions larefindicativ'e of the. fact that the same broken lines define. the incident andthe reflectedbeam. T his SQQ tiQiLiS tak en along a plane, passing through the centers of .a. vertical row of lenses. as indicated, by the section line 4 41.111 Figure 11.- The scale. is substantially enlarged .over .the fulljsizeof. the elements of portable displays ,of commercial sizes. I

Figure. 5 is a front.elevationof the device on a scale reduced from that of Figure 1 showing the .same scene on .the di'splay .surf ace. As thescale is .too smallto. show. the serrated outlines of the object depicted they are,.,sh own smooth. The view,. togethergwith. Figures. 6, '7,f8 and 9 show successive scenes of an animation eifect whichis typical. of one kindoi animation which nay be had with this invention. It is notedthat the action is continuous from Figure 9 through Fig ure .5 so that theinotionis smooth and not broken .bypaiises or jumps in the motion of the object strewn. I

Figure 10 is a fragmentary perspective view of the assemblage or, the screens oi the device, showing in broken lines the boundaries of a beam of 3 rays collected by one of the lenses and as it is projected into the device and reflected back through the lens to the field of view.

Figure 11 is a front elevation, on a scale somewhat enlarged over full size scale for the usual portable type of device, of a portion of the lens screen to show the nesting of the lenses alon three sets of center lines indicated by the reference lines 11-11, b-b and -0.

Figure 12 is a cross section of the same taken along the section line iii-I2 in Figure 11.

Figure 13 is a front elevation of a portion of a pattern screen corresponding in scale to Figure 11 and showing an arrangement of patterns to produce a certain animation effect in color over this portion of the display surface. The effect which will be produced by the scanning of this portion of the pattern screen by the corresponding lenses of the lens screen will be a part of the larger effect over the whole display surface. The purpose of this illustration and that of the following views is to show how motion in any direction and at any speed may be represented over the display surface by the proper design of the patterns and also to show the use of changing colors in the effect. The patterns are spaced in the same order a the lenses shown in Figure 11.

Figure 14 is a cross section of the same taken along the section line I 4! 4 of Fig. 13 to show the construction of the screen and the location of the surface on which the patterns are inscribed or formed.

Figures 15 and 16 are two views of the portion of the animation effect which will be observed on the portion of the lens screen shown in Figure 11 at two different stages in the operation of shifting one screen relative to the other with each lens scanning one of the patterns and moving around the circuit thereof simultaneously with all of the other lenses.

Figure 17 is a series of views on a reduced scale of the effect seen over the portion of the lens screen shown in Figure 11 when it is shifted relative to the portion of the pattern screen shown in Figure 13 in such fashion that each of the lenses scans its corresponding pattern in a clockwise direction around the pattern circuit. The views are taken at 30 degree intervals, Figure 15 being an enlargement of that view which is indicated in Figure 18 as taken at 0, and Figure 16 being an enlargement of that view which is indicated as taken at 120.

The essential elements of the invention in the embodiment shown are: The lens screen for condensing light coming from the field of view into convergent beams focusing at a given focal plane, a reflector screen fixed with relation to the lens screen and so conformed as to reflect the beams after they have passed through the focal plane back through the focal plane and the lenses to the field of view, a light permeable pattern screen bearing a circuitous, variable permeability, light modulating pattern for each of the lenses, mechanism to position and to shift said pattern screen in the focal plane relative to the lens and reflector screens in such fashion as to cause each beam to traverse the circuit of one of the patterns, and a container to position and protect the elements above described. In the preferred form of the invention the lens screen and reflector screen are stationary, with the lens screen forming the front cover of the container.

The device of Figure 1 has the proportion and general construction of the typical portable stand sign for locations in and around stores and in store windows. Being of the retro-reflective type it is most effective when positioned so as to throw back. to the observer light which reaches it from the observers general direction. Such a location as a back wall and under illumination by a spot light is suitable for this device. The general construction here shown, with such mechanical modifications as required by the special conditions of the case, may also be taken as typical of the device as constructed for roadside and other outdoor locations in which the headlight of a car in which the observer may be riding serves as the source of illumination.

The container is a shallow box having the back i and the rim 2. A spacer ring 3, positioned within the rim and in contact with the back. has an inturned flange 35. The rear surface of this flange serves as a guide for the movable pattern screen 10, and the front surface as a seat for the stationary lens screen 4. The clampdown ring 5 holds the lens screen in pl ce. The assemblage of box and lens screen, comprising the enclosure proper, is secured by the sheet metal screws 36 located at suitable intervals around the rim.

The reflector screen 30 is positioned to the rear of the lens screen, parallel thereto, and spaced therefrom at a distance such as to meet the con ditions described below in the explanation of the optical system of the device as illustrated in Figure 4. This reflector is provided with a flat edge portion 3! and a backturned flange 32. This flange is of such length as to seat against the back of the box with the front surface of the edge 31 positioned just far enough back of the flange 35 of the spacer ring 3 to form therewith a guide for the rim of the pattern screen ID. The reflector is also held by the screws 35 which are driven through the rings 3 and 5, the rim 2 of the box and the flange 32 of the reflector screen as the final assembly operation.

The driving mechanism consists of the lower drive unit 7 and the upper drive unit 8 connected together by the chain 9. The motor I2, at the bottom of the box, is held to the back of the box by means of the threaded hub 13 and lock nut M with the shaft 15 within the box, and the motor proper to the back. The cover 6 forms the motor compartment with the back of the box and also forms the back stand for the device.

The lower sprocket i6 is carried and driven by the motor shaft. The upper sprocket IT, with its stud shaft l8 and collar 9, idles in the journal plate 2:; secured to the back of the box. These sprockets each carry one of the eccentrically located stud pins 23 and 24. The eccentricity of both pins is the same and equal to the mean radius of the patterns on the pattern screen. The sprockets are connected together by the chain so that both pins are held and driven in the same angular position.

The pattern screen is positioned between the lens screen and the reflector screen slidable in the rim space between the flange 35 and the refiectcr rim 3!. To it are secured the journals 25 and 26 which extend backward through the openings 31 and 33 in the reflector screen and ride on the pins 23 and 24. Thus, in operation, every point of the pattern screen is shifted along a circuitous course the same as every other point. The diameter of this circuitous course is the mean diameter of the patterns. The pattern screen is located along the focal plane of the lenses. Hence, with parallel rays incident perpendicularamt-i 6 iron the lensscreemabanker hriehtspot w l be projected-ornthe patterns 591 8 .21. 1As thescreen ,isrshifted bythe motion ofthepins, each spot will traverse along a circuitous course.

It will be apgreciated from theconstructiondescribedthatchanges of effects maybe made .very quickly by opening thebox; and slippingthe pattern screen offof thestud pins andinsertingcin .itsplace a new screen with different inscriptions. To insure-accurate registry of the-lenses with the patterns the. lens screenmay be cemented to the ring 5 .or by any, suitable mechanical attachment prevented from turning when .the-cqhy changes ar made- Referrin-g now tov Figure c we ,find the lens .sclteen omp e nf shank of plan convex. lenses '22. ge ra y this is desira l ifrcmtm stand: point of co as such ,ail nsma may be ead ly pr ss or .castfmm glass-or. any of yera1.ava l able resins. ,However the double-convex form ma b se he .smcct s iie o theplate. may b 't ne o with .thef m sho n. an any o her desirable modification adopted in adaptation to commercial 0 nditions.

A'beam of light incident onone of the lenses *is indicated'bybrokenlines. Thisbeam issimilarly indicated as. converging toa'f ocalpoint A on the front surface ,of the pattern screen. Qn this surface is a thinlayer of material 2;! suitable for carrying the pattern impressions. The .pattern screen, with thisilayer 2| servesas the light modulatingelementof the device. They are described in their construction and iunctionbelow.

The reflector screen 30, positioned to the rear of the pattern screen, is formed with a bank of spherical indentations 33. Each of these indentations is in alignment with one of the lenses and so centered with the 'focal point of its corresponding lens that it serves as a-spherical reflGCtOl to send back to the lens'andto the field of View the light which falls upon it corningth-rough the-focal point. The-brokenlines in Figure eldefine the boundaries of a single collected by -one of the-lensesfroman objectdirectlyinfront of the device, projected in convergence to the focal point on the patternscreem-passing through a transparent-area of one of the patterns, collec ed by the reflector indentation fi iia and reflected thereby back through the patternsscreen and-the lens to the field of view. The-arrow=-headspoint ing in two directions indicate that the-incident and emergent beamsareinvolved.

Inorder to more clearly illustrate the optical system formed by-the screens, they-are shown in tragmen-taryperspective in Figure :10. The lens screen is sectioned along a vertical plane perpendicular to the screen and passing through the centersof several of the'lenses. The-vertical sec- .tion of a beam collected by one of theilenses rfrom an object directly in front of the-device is -=shown :eby broken lines along this :plan. The beam is shown thereby as. condensed to the focal point A on one ofthe pattemslofthe patternscreen .at a transparent area thereof, "transmitted .to and re.-

d'lected back through -;the pattern bythe reflector indentation 33a fand finallyiproiected back tosthe afield vof view by the thesame lens through which 'it enters, the two-directional arrow heads :being indicative of the ray tracing.

While, for the sake .of descriptive clarity, "I have assumed that each beam will abe focused at a focal point? actually the bright spot willnot be a point.-but asm all bright region. The in.- ciden't light will not ibeof parallel raysbut include .ra s of all divergencies. In commercial eon.-

{SilillQtiQIlS -the.;-iclea1iz,ed optical system ;described terns. v iticn on their sprockets. -.Thu s, asthe sproclgets ,are driven together by the chain, the pattern screen is shifted bodily with every; pointzen sit-be.-

the beams. :the .view and certain of them indicated by C. The'parts of "the lensiscreen corresponding to the reflected beams.

acanbe achiered nlyin approximation. The rays which are collected.andmefiectedinsuch manner as .to tgrve rise to .the observed animation. effect will.beiound-to.constitute beamsof certa-inminimum, convergence in their incidence onthe lenses, .and inztheirreflection, beams. of, certain minimum divergence from .the lenses-.tothe field of view.

.Sinceit isadyantageous to produce retro-reflectire. devices which display -.the. animationeffects over. tairlyhroadangles of -view,.-the practical re- ..sult is that they maybeccnstructed by ordinary noneprecision fabrication, methods.

The ,size of the brightspots.produced on.the

-.-pattern .screen will ..determine the number of scene changeswhich can be had with agiven construction. The broader they. are, the 'fewer.the

cuitous patterns .arerseen .formed, or inscribed, on

the frontesurface of the. screen [-9. These pat- ..terns areudistributedsover the screen in the same order-as the lenses of .screenli, and.- soarranged that, for parallel light fallinglperpendicularly .on the lens s creemlaspot of light willbeprojected -ontoeachpf the patternsby itscorresnonding lens,.,and-in the same circuit,position for all-of thelenses.

{Ifhe eccentricity of --,the;pins..23 and 2.4 :is the sameand equal tothemeani diameter of-the pat- .They areilocated atthesame. angular-pcingu carried.v alongaa circuitouscourse of the; mean patternd-iameter. .The patterns aretherefore lo- .catedion the screen-so that each lies along the .course, ofthe focal point tracedby-its correspondin ilens asionescreenis thusshifted relative "to the other. .Inli'igure 10;;thei-patternsareshown occiipyihatheareas between .the concentric circle as indi atedbyz-Th a as marked D within the v patterns and the areas marked E each of which falls between *three adjacent patterns,-are not invol-vedinthe .efiectand hencemay be finished inanysuitable fashion, oreven-leftunfinifih d if desired.

flfhe animation effects aregproeluced .by-th'eavar- .ious modulationof =the light beams as'they fall upon the -patterns and are obscured by opaque area s, filteredi hyicolqred areas-reduced. in intensity by partially transparent tare-as, or passed-by transparent areasend 'returned'to the field of view by the optical. elements. the pattern screen with variable permeability :patterns of 1S,l.lit35 b18 -.design any. desired type of l-By constructing display efifcctmayhe produced within the limits of the;device. The patterns which are'tobe seen project "the beams onto such .areas will appear dark. to view.

Other areas are :iully transparent and transmit Such areasare illustrated-as clear in lenses which project beams through these areas :to 'berefiected backandzto the field of View will appear light :to the view by virtue of such retro- -The type of image illustrated by Figures to 9 would be produced by patterns of this opaque and transparent design.

The pattern screen may be constructed in various fashions. One practical construction is to utilize a sheet of clear transparent resin of the type known commercially as Vinylite. This material is light and of sufficient durability and dimensional stability to serve under the working conditions met in this device. It may be processed for the pattern impressions in several ways. The pattern impressions may be applied as a decalcomania transfer. They may also be applied by silk screening with suitable paints or varnishes. Or they may be printed or developed by photographic methods in an emulsion layer. Various other methods are available in the graphic arts for producing the pattern screens. For any of these types of pattern representation the layer is indicated in the drawings by numeral 2|.

Considering now Figures 11 and 12 it is seen that the lens distribution along banks of center lines, represented by the lines 11-11, bb and c.c, 120 from each other, provides complete coverage of the display surface by the lenses so that all of the light falling on the surface is used in the effect. Noting the serrated condition of the outlines reproduced in Figure 1 and Figures 15, 16 and 17, it is to be understood that each lens enters into the effect substantially as a unit with no detail over its area. That is to say, since it is at focal distance from the pattern, as it passes from a region of one color on the pattern to a region of a different color the change which takes place to view occurs over the entire surface of the lens practically instantaneously. This accounts for the serrated effect of the outlines of the object depicted in Figure l and seen in Figures 15, 16 and 17. However, in practice, as the eifect which is finally produced is that of motion simulated by the rapid showing of one scene after another, each scene being slightly different from the one shown before and after, the effect is smoothed out to the view and in fact the impression of smooth detailing is heightened by the illusion of motion produced.

I have shown in Figure 13 an arrangement of patterns such as will make clear the manner in which motion in different directions at different speeds and in changing colors may be represented. The pattern arrangement is simplified for purposes of illustration, it being understood that many more changes may be produced in practice around the courses of the patterns.

As t. e pattern screen section shown is operated in the device in association with the lens screen in such fashion as to traverse all of the lenses simultaneously around the courses of the respective patterns in the same angular position relative to each other, the effect of motion in various directions is produced. The views in Figure 17 give the effect at certain intervals, to show the general action. Several times as many views may be taken to show the detailed changes as the action progresses, if desired. The views shown are sufiicient to illustrate the variety of effects attainable with the device.

The patterns shown in Figure 13 comprise the annular areas enclosed by the pairs of concentric circles, indicated by B. The areas D and E are not reached by the beams thrown onto the screen by the lenses which originate at any point in the normal field of view, and are not scanned by the lenses to the view of persons in the normal field of view. These areas may therefore be treated in any desired fashion, being left uncoated, or obscured by a dark coating, as desired.

Along the courses of the patterns the areas marked C are left clear to indicate that they are fully transparent and hence appear white as seen by the light returned to the observers position after passing through the pattern screen and being reflected back through the lenses. The areas marked G are shaded in the convention for green, indicative of the fact that they are finished to filter the transmitted light to a green. The areas marked H as similarly shaded to indicate orange filtering.

The centers of the patterns are arranged in a bank of the same order as the lenses shown in Figure 11. Hence if the lenses of that portion of the lens screen which is shown in Figure 11 be positioned in front of that portion of the pattern screen which is shown in Figure 13 at the proper focal distance and be centered over the patterns at any given section of the pattern circuit, they may be each brought to registry over a similar point of one of the patterns. To indicate this relationship, the reference lines a-a, bb and c-c in Figure 13 are drawn so as to out the patterns and intersect all crossing lines of the bank of lines thus indicated at the 300' points of the patterns. By moving one of the screens in its plane along a circuitous course of the mean diameter of the patterns each lens may be caused to scan its pattern. Hence at each point of that course there will appear to view on the lens screen an enlarged image which will be a compound image made up of enlargements of a small portion of each of the patterns, as seen by the light coming back through the pattern from its respective reflector indentation, all of which portions will at any stage in the operation be in the same general circuit position on the patterns.

If we thus operate the screens in association with each other so as to produce that image which is represented by the uppermost points of the patterns we have an image as shown in Figure 15. The outlines of the image will be serrated in following the boundaries of the lenses as each lens enlarges a portion of the pattern circuit with substantially no detailing over its individual area. If now one screen is shifted relative to the other so as to cause the lenses to scan the patterns in the clockwise direction we will have an animation efiect produced on the lens screen as the different portions of the patterns come into and go out of registry with the lenses. This effect is shown in approximation in the series of small views in Figure 18.

At 0 we have the showing of Figure 15 which is that of a green area extending from the left to a vertical boundary near the center of the image and a white area over the rest of the image. This green area is moving to the right, becoming a vertical strip of green which becomes narrower in the next two views marked 30 and 60 and vanishes near the right hand edge of the image. There are thus two different speeds in this part of the action. At an orange shadow is seen moving from the right hand edge with a vertical boundary toward the left. The lower portion of this shadow moves faster so that when we reach 180 it has a boundary in an oblique position. It then recedes toward the lower right at a much higher speed.

At the image is entirely white. At 300 the green shadow is found starting from the left hand edge of the image and moving toward the right. From thiswe denionstrate'that motion in any'direction and at any'spe'ed in any color or color combination maybe represented, limited only by. the amount of space available along the patternsand the'size'of the area being scanned on each pattern at any instant. These factors have to do with th accuracy of construction, the width of the field of view to which the showing is to be made and other practical considerations. Under practical commercial conditions a sufiicient number of changes may be had to 'produce very effective animation displays.

' While I---have described my invention indetail above with respect to a certain preferred embodiment thereof, I do not -wishto belimited to the specific construction shown or theparticular 'arrangement of parts insofar as permissible modifications under the broad ideas disclosed are concerned, since many changes and modifications thereof are possible and the invention may be embodied in widely varying forms without dcparting from the spirit and scope thereof in its broader aspects. Hence I desire to include all modifications and arrangements coming within the language and scope of any one or more of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. An exhibition device including: permeable pattern screen bearing a plurality of circuitous patterns each following the course of a closed circuit of outline common to all and distributed over the image bearing area of said screen, a lens screen positioned in front of said pattern screen and bearing a plurality of lenses conformed to condense light beams coming from the general direction of the normal field of view in front of said device into a plurality of separate beams convergent each to one of said patterns in a small section thereof and in the same general circuit position for all of the same, a reflector positioned to the rear of said pattern screen fixed relative to said lens screen and conformed and positioned to reflect light beams reaching it through the pattern screen back through the pattern screen to said lens screen in such manner that said beams are projected to the field of view as beams of relatively narrow divergence, and means to shift said pattern screen in its plane relative to said lens screen and said reflector along a course determined to cause each of said lenses to continuously scan its respective pattern, the permeability to light of said patterns varying from section to section around the circuits thereof and with respect to each other in proper manner to produce in each stage of the operation above described a, distinct image to View by virtue of the modulation of said beams by the pattern sections through which they pass to the proper light values for the portions of the image represented thereby, each image so produced being serially related to all the other images so produced in a sequence of image changes of an animation effect continually repeated by the cyclic traversing of said patterns by said beams.

2. An exhibition device including: a light permeable pattern screen bearing a plurality of circuitous patterns each following the course of a closed circuit of outline common to all and distributed over the image bearing area of said screen, a lens screen positioned in front of said pattern screen and bearing a plurality of lenses conformed to condense light beams coming from the general direction of the normal field of View a light infro'ntof said device intoaplurality of separate beams" convergent each to onejof said patterns in asmallsection thereof an'dir'i the'same general circuit p'osition'forall'ofthesame, a reflector positioned to" therea'r of said pattern screen fixed relative to said lens screen and conformed andpositioned to reflect light beams reaching it threat-ignthe pattern screen back through the pattern screen to" said lens screen in such mannertliat'said beams are projected to the field of vi'e as beams o'f relatively narrow divergence, an n c'anstEshntjsaid pattern screen in its plane relative tdSaid" lens screen and said reflector along a e-curse deterin'in'ed to cause each of said to continu usly' scan its respective patthepeiineab'ility' to light of said patterns cmsecuonto section around the cirt' c e'of'and" with respect to each other in proper manner to produceid each stage of the operation above described a distinct image to View by virtue of the modulation of said beams by the pattern sections through which they pass to the proper light values for the portions of the image represented thereby.

3. An exhibition device including: a light permeable pattern screen bearing a plurality of circuitous patterns each following the course of a closed circuit of outline common to all and distributed over the image bearing area of said screen, a lens screen positioned in front of said pattern screen and bearing a plurality of lenses conformed to condense light beams coming from the general direction of the normal field of View in front of said device into a plurality of separate beams convergent each to one of said patterns in a small section thereof and in the same general circuit position for all of the same, a reflector positioned to the rear of said pattern screen conformed to present thereto a plurality of spherical reflecting surfaces each in axial alignment with one of the lenses and so spaced therefrom as to reflect light beams reaching it through the pattern screen back through the pattern screen to said lens screen in such manner that said beams are projected to the field of View as beams of relatively narrow divergence, and means to shift said pattern screen in its plane relative to said lens screen and said reflector along a course determined to cause each of said lenses to continuously scan its respective pattern, the permeability to light of said patterns varying from section to section around the circuits thereof and with respect to each other in proper manner to produce in each stage of the operation above described a distinct image to view by virtue of the modulation of said beams by the pattern sections through which they pass to the proper light values for the portions of the image represented thereby, each image so produced being serially related to all the other images so produced in a sequence of image changes of an animation effect continually repeated by the cyclic traversing of said patterns by said beams.

a. An eXhibition device including: a light permeable pattern screen bearing a plurality of circuitous patterns each following the course of a closed circuit of outline common to all and distributed over the image bearing area of said screen, a lens screen positioned in front of said pattern screen and bearing a plurality of lenses conformed to condense light beams coming from the general direction of the normal field of view in front of said device into a plurality of separate beams convergent each to one of said patterns in a small section thereof and in the same gen- 1 l eral circuit position for all of the same, a reflector positioned to the rear of said pattern screen conformed to present thereto a plurality of spherical reflecting surfaces each in axial align ment with one of the lenses and so spaced therefrom as to reflect light beams reaching it through the pattern screen back through the pattern screen to said lens screen in such manner that said beams are projected to the field of view as beams of relatively narrow divergence, and 10 means to shift said pattern screen in its plane relative to said lens screen and said reflector along a course determined to cause each of said lenses to continuously scan its respective pattern, the permeability to light of said patterns varying from section to section around the circuits thereof and with respect to each other in proper manner to produce in each stage of the operation above described a distinct image to view by virtue of 12 the modulation of said beams by the pattern sections through which they pass to the proper light values for the portions of the image represented thereby.

FRED HOTCHNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,679,167 Nolan July 31, 1928 1,792,731 Craig Feb. 17, 1931 1,816,459 Adelmann July 28, 1931 1,851,216 Shipman Mar. 29, 1932 1,987,357 Bergen et a1. Jan. 8, 1935 2,432,896 Hotchner Dec. 16, 1947 

